In-Situ Synthesis of Highly Efficient Direct Z-Scheme Cu3P/g-C3N4 Heterojunction Photocatalyst for N2 Photofixation

In this work, a highly efficient p-type Cu3P/n-type g-C3N4 heterojunction photocatalyst was synthesized in situ. XRD, UV-Vis, N-2 adsorption, TEM, XPS, PL, and EIS are used to characterize the as-prepared catalysts. The results show that Cu3P nanoparticles are highly dispersed onto the g-C3N4 surface, which obviously promotes the separation rate of electrons and holes. The charge transfer between Cu3P and g-C3N4 follows the "Z-scheme" mechanism. The as-prepared Cu3P/g-C3N4 heterojunction photocatalyst displays the ammonium ion production rate of 7.5 mg L-1 h(-1)g(cat)(-1), which is 28.8 times higher than that of neat g-C3N4, as well as good catalytic stability. The possible reaction mechanism is proposed.